Entrepreneurs, real life solutions, and no government interference

   An article in the October 22 issue of the Wall Street Journal revealed the invention of new robots that let paralyzed people walk again. This isn’t science fiction…it is the result of work and research initiated and funded originally by the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA). The impetus may have come from the need to find ways to put injured soldiers back into the mainstream of life. The great news is that entrepreneurs are springing up to find ways to make the most efficacious and least expensive robot to sell.

   The robots resemble exoskeletons. A walking skeleton, if you will, that holds up a flesh and blood person. When strapped onto these robots, the person with paraplegia can walk again, move around, perform ordinary daily tasks of living. This is nearly miraculous in terms of integrating technology and solutions for people with debilitating injuries. Imagine someone with a spinal cord injury who was told he could never walk again getting up and walking around a room! This is a dream come true

   Companies world-wide are developing these robots, each wanting to take the pinnacle in the market place for providing and selling the robots. The good news is that creativity, innovation and entrepreneurship is alive in well on the planet. The bad news, you guessed it, some interference from the federal government.

   First the Food and Drug Administration has put up road blocks for these devices because, unlikely as it seems, they can’t control the robots. FDA requirements are more intrusive on these personal devices. This means robots made outside the United States experience difficulty getting FDA approval for imports to the US.

   The market potential for these devices is huge. But will we place the ability to control companies above need? If past experience is any indication, the answer is yes. The best way to ensure people who need help to walk again can get that help is for the feds to refrain from stepping on the toes of entrepreneurs and their companies. The future is here for new hope and life. We don’t want to see that hope squelched by excessive regulation.